New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1887-05-08
ODDITIES AT THE DOG SHOW.
PAMPERED PUGs AND JEALOUS ST. BER-
NARDS.

and experts The experts at their best any fine
afternoon when the judging is going on briskly.
And if one follow their lingo about points and
pedgrees he will do best to go then to see the dog
show.
First Of all arc the professional dog fanciers. One
can tell them by their plain clothes and business
like manners. They chat Familiarity with the at.
tendants in dull brown caps and coats. who hold
the dogs while they wait turns OF chase them mp
and down the inclosure for exercise. Quite diff
ferent sort of expert is the fashionably dressed
young man who owns dog The fanciers follow
him around admiringly; the attendants tip
their hats when he condescends for
minute to swap points with them.
He can exhibit his silk hat, his wide trousers
and his big stick all over the Garden, and every
body will smile on him. And by the time the after
noon Is over he will have had about ninety nine
offers OF choice new dogs.
The fashionable young mans taste runs chiefly
to bulldogs and bull-terriers. He ia backed up
largely by the fashionable young woman. She, too.
wants Some more novel pet than her aunt's pug or
hsr mothers poodle. But the older ladies, IL they
are on hand land they are sure to be when these
two sets Of dogs Judged, stick fast to their old
pets The quarrel between the two factions comes
out strongly as tho rivals for social honors led
into the ring.
"What nasty. grumpy tempers these pug dogs
have,' exclaims ono matronly partisan.
81 think the devil must have made those ugly
black poodlcs." retorts pug enthusiast He used
to go around in that shape once you know"
All the dogs at the bench show have good ped-
grees Of course. But they break, nevertheless,
into two big social classes. the plain everyday
working animals like the hounds, pointers settlers
and colies and the scornful aristocrat' the pugs,
poodles, spanlels, bulldogs and terriers The mas
tifIs Newfoundlands and St Bernards. il is true,
are scarcely house pots or sporting dogs either.
yet they side naturally with other jealons
plcbeians against the pampered little
fellows The St Bernards, who were over near
the cages of tho toy dogs lost their tempers entire
ly before tho show was over. growing Mt the
crowds that stopped to fonde tho tiny pugs and
spanels aud almost jumping out of their kennels
to grab trainer, dog and all, when the little nris-
tocrats were having their airings. One of the
biggest smooth-coated st. Bsrnards forgot him self
so far to snap at little girl who had just been
foudlng pug across the wav. and finally two
winners of prizes got into scuille of their own in
their bloOdthrsty disgust at the popularity of
their rivals opposite.
The s1nooth-ooated St Bernards made moro noise
probably than all the rest of tao dogs in the Garden
taken together, and that is saying good deal for
the soundness OF their lungs The rough-cOated
ones on the other side of the room kept their
serenity unrufod for the most part. But then they
had only the modest. unassumng pointers TO face
and pointer easily be stared ont Of counte-
nance The big mastIis were away of in the north
west corner of the Garden. with nobody to grow
at and no silly house pets near AT hand
10 stir up their envy. Some OF tho
mastIis and tho st Bcnards had got mixed.
however and there was good deal Of speculation
in consequence over these supposed freaks in or
breeding. young man IN broad light trnuSers.
heavy tan gloves aud "A shining silk hat. with "A big
knob OF oak in his hand. undertook to explain
one Of them lie knew 1t all having apparently
come from the Hub
like him IN Boston. You SOC. the Swiss Demands
crossed with the English mas,ifs. That made tho
English Demands. Now you take English
Bernard and an English mastih and yOu get this
All English aud All according % Darwin"
well. wouldn't push. Darwin too hard old
chappic" said protecting friend. Don't YOU sec
the sign mp there. that says, 'Pnre Swiss ST. Ber-
naTd.-Latc Entry !"
The two or three boarhounds. sandwicheI In
among tho deerhounds aud grcyhoundS. gave one
or two limitations of hunt m full CRY one after
noon. They set half the little dogs IN tho show
burying themselves la the straw of their ko nnels.
But tue deerhonnds couldn't be got to take much
in erest in this performance. They sized II up ap-
parentIy a mere stage effort. Nothing. in fact,
could move these gaunt, solemn looking animals
They can't have leas if they be az quiet as that
all the time. saida doggy woman who was look
ing at them on Thursday. " But they look 20 dirty
aud unhappy. anyway"
The one lively kennel over among the hounds was
that OF bull-terricr with bloOdshot eyes. who had
fonnd a kennel Over there by mistake aud kept
yeping plaintvely 10 be taken back to tho cosey.
we-trmmed quarters OF his follow donothng
aTlstOcrats.
There were many people who found the kennels
OF the bulldogs, pure and SIMPLE. by far the
piquaut and striking bit of the show At tho top of
. o Tobn r. 1havor~a ttvo oh
Robinson Crusoe and Britomartis. Both were sur
passinrly ugly. with their puckcred black noses,
yawnIng cayems Of jaws aud shaky bowed legs.
Their eyes were oyerhung with sleepy lids and
their phIzes drawn from tho nose centre
into perpetual half-grIn. half-scowl. One
was pessimistic philosopher who had lost
interest In everything outside his own kennel
The other was n wary Diogeues on tho lookout for
the trousers seat OF another honest man. It was
rather trying test of honesty, aud few were bold
enough 10 risk It THOSE who dd tho dog
shifted at cynicaly and let go by. The high-bred
bulldogs, IN fact werc unfit rmly quiet and gontle
The buil-terrIers beyond-lesS ugly perhaps,
with straight noses and smaller. narrower
jaws-wero far vicious aud ill-tempcred
Several of these were put down as dangerous"
and fenced IN safely behind wire pettlngs They
grow led and snapped good deal, even az children
and beat ali the other small dogs at barking except
their kInsmen, the foX-terrers.
Some genius at tho show last week described the |
dachshunds both bow-leggcd and knock -knccd !
and they do wobbie about when they try TO walk
as If they had sixteen other contradictory leg weak
DeSses. Few visitors could spell out their names |
and they ran IN with the bcagles
some Strange kind OF dog from Europe or Asia.
1t must be said for the poOdles that they wero !
quiet and dignifed. rs became such fashionable |
fayOrites 10 may DO that the Doodlcs are going !
out trfe nowadays as ladies' pets There were |
only about dozen IN all entered at the show aud |
rather oddly air the priZe-winners IN both classes
belonged to men. For pure ngliness these black |
clumsy pieces of tangled. frowsy hair |
and lustreless SKIN can distance even the |
bulldogs And they have redeeming qualities |
Mt least on the surface. Yet II would |
take chapter to run over the taken with |
these stupid creatures Tho barber has to clip |
their hair into some sembance of a hons full |
name and bare back and TANKS. A tuft must be !
left ut the tip OF the tail and patch each of the
legs Then the nurse ties the precious animal |
over with ribbons, with a blanket in colOrs TO |